Oh Fish!
by knittingeek
Summary: More ridiculous fluffy nonsense. Chapter 7, part 7. Edited last line.
1. Chapter 1

_**I'm sorry for this, really I am. There are at least a gazillion other things I should be doing today, but I had to get this out of my head. Hope you enjoy ;o)**_

Kate was running around her apartment gathering her belongings so she could head out for work. Just as she put her arm through the sleeve of her jacket and was about to leave she saw the sign that he had taped to her door, 'Did you feed the fish?' She smiled, rolled her eyes and rushed back to the counter to drop some food into the tank; making sure to say 'good morning' to each one. As she was placing the cover back on the small canister of food her phone slipped out of her hand and landed on the treasure chest at the bottom of the 'deep blue sea'. She stood there flummoxed. The front was cracked. It slid off the chest with a quiet kerplunk and the fish scattered away.

"Oh F…..ish!." She clenched her fists like a three year old and with gritted teeth she let out a loud "ARGGGGHHHH" She was already late for work. Now she would have to search through still unpacked boxes to see if she could locate an old phone.

She was sitting on the floor in front of her closet rummaging through a box of what could only be classified as useless crap, cursing the day Castle showed up with the tank and all the fish insisting she have something to keep her company, when there was a loud knock at her door.

Her first thought was Castle, but then she heard "Katie, Katie are you in there? Are you okay?" She jumped up and tripped over the box upending its contents all over the hall, then flung open the door. "Dad? What are you doin' here?"

He wrapped her in a hug and held her out at arm's length. "Are you okay?"

"Of course I'm okay. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I had routine blood work done at the hospital this morning and thought I would stop in at the precinct to see you, and Esposito and Ryan said they hadn't seen you yet. When I tried calling again and _again_ and didn't get an answer I got concerned."

Just then there was more banging on her door …..this time she knew it was Castle. She rolled her eyes and went back to her rummaging. Her father looked at her and then at the door and raised his eyebrows at her.

"Go ahead, and hurry up because he'll break it down and then I'll never hear the end of it."

Jim opened the door and a very surprised Castle stumbled in with a coffee carrier in one hand and his other still in a fist from knocking. "Uh…hi." He looked past her father and to Beckett on the floor in front of the upturned mess, his immediate thought was intruder, Kate saw the look on his face just as he pulled his fist back.

She jumped to her feet. "Castle, No don't, this is my dad."

Her father smiled and put out his hand to shake Castle's hand. Castle reached over too and said, "Rick Castle, nice to meet you, Sir..uh….coffee?"

Jim shook his hand "Jim Beckett. Thank you, don't mind if I do." Kate stood up and pulled hers out of the carrier and then handed the other one to her father. She then settled back down to the debris in front of her.

Castle looked at the mess on the floor and then back at Kate. "Kate, what's going on?"

"Seriously Castle? This is all _your_ fault." She swept her hand around the mess.

"How? Never mind. How come you're not at work and why you didn't answer your phone?"

She pointed to the sign on the door and then to the fish tank. Both men followed her hand as she pointed to the phone at the bottom of the tank. Her father tried to stifle a laugh.

Castle on the other hand was a little more cautious. His eyes got wide and then he looked over at Jim laughing and Kate fuming. He peered into the tank, "Hey, you guys okay in there? No injuries? Did Mommy scare you? Um Beckett…you probably shoul…"

"Shut up, Castle."

"Right. I'll get you a new one. We can go now; I'll get you a better one. One that you can play all kinds of games on and that will remind you to feed the fish and …."

She reached to her side for her gun. Her father was still laughing silently. She glared at him. "Both of you get out of here now."

"I'm sorry Katie, it is pretty funny."

"Oh, it's just freakin' hilarious, do you have any idea how much of an inconvenience this is? Do you know how many phones I've gone through already this year?"

Castle slipped off his jacket and rolled up his sleeve and reached in and pulled the phone out of the tank. He opened the side and pulled out the memory card. "Come on let's go." He reached down with his dry hand to help her up and pulled her close, placing a quick peck on her lips and whispering into her ear. "I love it when you're all hot and bothered."

She rolled her eyes and grabbed her coffee and turned to leave. "Come on Dad, let's go phone shopping and then Castle here is going to buy us breakfast." She grabbed Castle's phone out of his pocket and sent a quick text to Esposito.

As Castle went out the door in front of them, her dad reached over and pulled her to his side and said "This one's a keeper, Katie."

She shook her head and smiled and hugged him back. "I know, Dad, I know."

_**Okay, so maybe I can get some real work done now that that is out of the way. (And by real work I mean knitting or reading…oh and maybe a little bit of laundry…very little bit…) Happy 'Castle' Monday to those of you who get to watch tonight. Hugs ;o)**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**This is for those of you who wanted more of 'Oh Fish!' This is the prequel. Mostly it is just more fluffy nonsense. By the way…I did a bit of fish research for this and let's just assume this is how the scenario plays out…it is fan fiction folks and I am not looking to win a Pulitzer for this so just go with it…ok? Please?**_

_**None of the characters are mine…none ;o)**_

As per usual she was trying to finish up some of the never ending paper work associated with closing a case and he was babbling on and on about god knows what. She was tuning him out as best she could.

"You need a pet."

"Hmmmm."

"You, Detective Beckett are not paying attention to me; I might actually have something very important to say."

"I'm sure."

"Beckett."

"Yep."

"Beeeeeckeeeetttttt."

She turned slightly toward him.

"You. Need. A. Pet."

Now she was glaring. "Is this your idea of 'very important'? Because I'm not thinking this is worthy of my undivided attention and just for the record" she leaned in close to him, "I. Do. Not. Need. A. Pet."

"Yes. You. Do."

"Don't either."

"Do so, too. I need to know there is someone there, when I can't be, to keep you company. So you don't get lonely."

"Castle, I'm used to being alone, it's okay really." She stared at him. "You need to leave."

"Not happening, we have plans."

"Such as?"

"Shopping."

"What kind of shopping?"

"Pet shopping."

She took a deep breath and sat back in her chair and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Castle for the last time, I do not need a pet, I am never home, it would die within a week if not sooner."

"Stephanie Plum has had a hamster FOREVER."

"Who the heck is Stephanie Plum?"

He sat up straight in his chair. "Seriously Beckett, you don't know who Stephanie Plum is?"

"No, I'm sure you're going to enlighten me though."

"She is a bounty hunter."

"And you know this how?"

"Because I read."

She turned back to him. "Another fictional character?"

"Yes."

"And she has a hamster that has made it through how many books?"

"Oh, must be 16 now, yes…_Sizzling Sixteen_ was the last one."

"Sizzling Sixteen?"

"The hamster's name is Rex, and he has survived all kinds of catastrophes. See, you could have a hamster, or a bird….cats are good too."

"I'm not a cat person and who wants to clean up after animals anyway?" She wrinkled up her nose at the thought of emptying bird cages and litter boxes.

"I have the perfect answer." He stood up and took her jacket and grabbed her hand, "Let's go."

She sighed heavily, squeezed his hand then let go of it. "Castle I have to finish this. If you leave me alone for about an hour I can be done and we can grab something to eat later."

He sighed heavily and replaced her jacket on the back of her chair and dropped a quick kiss on the top of her head. "I'll be at your place at seven."

She hadn't been home ten minutes and he was at her door. She raked her hand through her hair as she opened it. He was standing there with two bags in his arms and behind him were two guys holding a rather large box. "Oh, Castle you didn't?"

"I did."

She started to close the door on him and he stuck his foot in the way.

She relinquished and opened the door. "Please tell me it isn't a rodent or something that makes noise."

"No rodents and no noisemakers." He motioned for the gentleman behind him to come in and they started setting things up on her counter. He then handed her a paper bag.

She smiled nicely at the guys and then glared at Castle and took the bag from him gingerly. "Castle it smells."

"Beckett, that's supper; and it smells good."

She peeked into the bag and pulled out the Chinese take-out boxes and set them on the counter.

He handed her another bag. "Hold it with two hands."

"Castle, I don't like this."

"You're going to love them."

"Them…there's more than one?"

"Close your eyes."

"No."

"Beckett, please…humor me."

"Castle this bag is moving, if there are mice in here…."

"No mice. Stop fidgeting." He pulled a clear bag out of the paper bag. "Aren't they cute?"

"Oh. They're Nemos."

He took the paper bag from her and placed the bag of fish in her hands. He helped the guys unload the tank from the box and listened to all the directions on how to check temps and salinity of the water…all of which had been discussed at the fish store prior to his purchase. He'd been able to talk them into selling it to him all complete so there wasn't really much to do other than wait for the temperature to stabilize.

He turned to look at her just standing there with the fish. "Why don't you talk to them and make them feel at home."

"Ummmm…talk to them?"

"Beckett, haven't you ever had a pet before?"

"No."

"Seriously?"

"No pets. Ever."

"Well, just say 'Hi'."

"Castle, I feel ridiculous talking to fish."

"Try it you may like it."

The 'fish men' finished up what they were doing and gave Castle some last minute directions and then left.

"They can't even hear me."

He stopped what he was doing and peered into the bag. "Hi guys, this is your new mommy, she's a little cranky so you'll have to be patient with her." He dragged his finger lightly over the bag and the fish followed it. "See they like me."

She rolled her eyes at him and peeked into the bag. "How long is this going to take? Can I eat?"

"I'm almost done and then we can put the bag in the tank for a bit until the water temp is just right. What are you going to name them?"

She rolled her eyes again. "They don't need names."

"Beckett, that's like not naming your children."

"Castle. These fish are _not_ my children and I am _not_ their 'mommy'."

He looked back at the bag and spoke directly to the fish. "She really isn't that mean, we'll come up with the perfect names for you." He went back to fiddling with the tank. "So, names?"

"Whatever you want."

"Turner and Hooch."

She smiled and shook her head.

"Okay, how about Cagney and Lacey?"He continued to rattle off couples names and she just sat there.

"Ryan and Esposito?" He got an eye roll for that one. "Okay maybe not."

"Starsky and Hutch"

"Lois and Clark"

"Holmes and Watson"

"Spenser and Hawk"

"Batman and Robin"

"Lucy and Ricky"

"Ward and June"

"Mike and Carol"

"Kevin and Winnie"

"Joanie and Chachi"

She finally interrupted his rant. "Nick and Nora"

He stopped and a slow smile turned into a huge grin and he walked over to her. He placed both hands on her face and kissed her long and sweet. "See, this is why we are so good together." He placed his hands under hers and lifted them up so he could see into the bag. "Hello Nick and Nora, welcome to your new home." He reached over to the tank and pointed. "Oh, and look what I got to put in the bottom of the 'deep blue sea'?"

"A treasure chest?"

"Yes, remind you of when we found that treasure?"

She smiled and shook her head. She handed the bag of fish back to him and he placed it in the tank. "Okay, let's eat and then we can let them loose."

They sat at the counter eating their Chinese take-out and she listened while he told fish stories. Once they were done eating he opened the bag and let the fish check out their new 'home'.

"They are kind of cute."

He smiled at her. "I knew you would love them."

"I said they were cute Castle, the word love never crossed my lips."

"You wait. You'll get attached. I bet within a week you will be chatting away at them."

"Next thing you know I'll be building theory with them."

He chuckled.

"Actually, you may have done me a huge favor."

"How's that?"

"Well, now I have someone to keep me company _and_ build theory with." She leaned over and placed a kiss on his cheek and said, "So, I shouldn't need to keep you around."

"Beckett, that is _so_ not funny."

She smiled and winked at him as she slid off the stool and sauntered off to her bedroom, just before she shut the door she peeked out and said, "Good night, Castle. Don't forget to lock the door on your way out."

He groaned and peered into the tank. "This is progress." He went over to her desk and pulled a piece of paper out of the printer and in big letters he wrote out 'DID YOU FEED THE FISH?' He taped it to the door and just before he walked out he peeked back at the fish. "Hey, take good care of her; she's very special to me."

_**Um….so I was thinking of maybe doing a prequel to this too? What do you think? Silly? That's okay…I might do it anyway ;o) There's more fluff and nonsense floating around in my noggin'. We'll see if it develops into anything. I haven't given up on 'Sleeping Beauty?'. The muse is gallivanting in warmer climates so this will have to do for now.**_

_**Oh and for those of you who don't know….Nick and Nora are from 'The Thin Man'. You should most definitely read the book or watch the movie. **_


	3. Chapter 3

_**So my head is completely swollen. Thanks so much for all the reviews. Seriously folks? You are too kind :o)**_

_**Writing a story backwards is a little more challenging than I expected so this is the 'first' chapter and I will write another that will come before the actual first chapter that is posted. Do you understand this? I'm confused, but it is also late and I am drinking wine…'nuf said….. on to the story. Oh and this is for ChrisS and cookme25 from the Castle TV chat who needed something fluffy to read tonight. Sorry it isn't 'Sleeping Beauty?' Hopefully get that posted in a day or two….or three.**_

_**And…characters are not mine.**_

They were in her car driving through NYC, leaving a crime scene at 6 am. She was exhausted. It seemed like they would just finish one case and before the ink could dry on the paperwork another body would drop. They had actually been awake and working together for almost 28 hours. For once he was actually quiet.

"So, how come you're not talking incessantly? I could use a little chatter here to keep me awake."

"What do you want to talk about?"

"I don't know. You're not at a loss for words are you?"

"You do have that effect on me."

They stopped at a busy intersection. She smiled at him, "Do you just want me to drop you off at the loft?"

"I suppose, unless you want to take me home with you?" He looked over and waggled his eyebrows at her.

"What would I do with you?"

"I make a great teddy bear."

She rolled her eyes at him and continued driving.

"You do know they all believe we are sleeping together."

She stared at him. "Where did _that_ come from?"

"Just saying."

"Is that what you were thinking about? Us sleeping together?"

"Don't tell me it has never crossed your mind?"

"Don't humor yourself, Castle."

She parked her car in front of her apartment building and got out and slammed the door.

"I thought you were going to drop me off at the loft?"

"Find your own ride home."

"Beckett, come on. You're acting like a ten year old." He followed her into her building and she whipped around so fast he ran right into her. He put his hands on her forearms to steady her and she closed her eyes for a second and moved back a step.

"Castle, I am too tired to deal with you right now. Go home."

"My phone is dead. Can I least use your phone to call a cab?"

"Seriously? No. Go stand on the street."

"It'll take forever to get a cab in this neighborhood, at this hour, besides it's snowing, and I'm cold and hungry."

"Now who's acting like a ten year old?"

He continued to follow her to her apartment. Once she got to her door she glared at him.

"And…I have to pee, please let me in?"

She rolled her eyes and unlocked the door. The apartment was cold and dark. He went to make a beeline to the bathroom and she pulled him back and went in front of him and slammed the door. She removed all her clothing that was strewn around the small room and tossed it in the hamper and straightened things up. Then she went back out to the kitchen. He had turned on a few lights and was standing in front of the open fridge door.

"There's no real food in here."

"Yes, there is."

"There's only one egg, but no milk so we can't have omelets."

"Yes, but _I_ can have a fried egg."

"Oh, haha."

"Close the door, Castle."

He closed the fridge door and opened the freezer. He stuck his head in and looked back at her with wide eyes. "Beckett, there is NOTHING in here, how do you have nothing in your freezer?"

"I thought you had to pee?"

He closed the door. "Right, excuse me. Maybe you can find some breakfast food while I'm gone?"

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She opened the fridge back up and pulled out the orange juice and poured two glasses. Then opened up a cupboard and took out a loaf of bread and put four slices in the toaster.

When he came back out to the kitchen she was sitting at the counter with her toast slathered in Nutella. She had buttered his and left a jar of strawberry jam for him.

He sat down beside her and pecked her on the cheek and smiled at her. "Thank you, dear."

She rolled her eyes at him and slid her phone towards him. "I thought you were calling a cab?"

"Can't I eat my breakfast first?"

"By the time you're done eating it will be here."

"It's really quiet here, don't you get lonely? You know, you should have a pet."

She closed her eyes and sighed. "That is the last thing I need right now, Castle. I can't even take care of myself half the time never mind an animal."

"I'll give you that. So how come I don't get the chocolate stuff?"

"This is not 'chocolate stuff' it's Nutella and its mine, I don't share it with anyone."

"Can I have a taste?"

"No, you can't have a taste."

"You're not very nice when you're tired."

"Speaking of which, I am going to bed."

"Can I…"

"NO!"

"Why not?"

She stared at him. "Seriously Castle?"

"Yes."

"Fine, let's go."

"Really?"

"Sure, I figure you can have your way with me and then leave and I won't have to deal with you anymore."

"That doesn't sound like a very good plan, why do I have to leave?"

"Why would you stay?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"You would finally have what you wanted."

He walked towards her and she immediately crossed her arms in front of her. He placed his hands on her arms and leaned forward and placed a kiss on her forehead. "I want the whole fairytale, Kate."

She sighed heavily and whispered. "We're good the way we are Castle, I've been burned too many times. I don't do serious well. Let's just leave well enough alone." She turned to leave. "Lock the door on your way out."

He walked over to the counter and cleared their dishes and picked up her phone to call a cab. He set it back down and took off his jacket and shoes, locked the door and sat on the couch, head in his hands. "Oy, how do I always screw this up?" He sat back and the toll of the past two days finally hit him, within minutes he was asleep.

She had not heard the door close; nor had she been able to sleep. She sauntered out to the living room in a pair of pajama bottoms rolled down and slung low on her hips and a long sleeved tee shirt and saw him fast asleep; head on the back of the couch; feet perched up on the coffee table. She smiled. He was having a really hard time with Alexis off at college and his mother busy with her new acting school; she knew he hated to be alone. She sat down on the couch beside him and pulled the blanket over both of them. She leaned up against him and he pulled his arm out and pulled her close. Finally, after two weeks of not sleeping well, she fell into a deep, peace filled sleep.

She woke up hours later, slightly disoriented. She was on her couch curled up against a warm body whose arms were wrapped around her. The room wasn't very dark and she could hear snow hitting the window. She picked her head up slowly and Castle smiled at her.

"Castle, why are you still here?" She lay her head back down on his chest and he ran one hand over her back and the other through her hair.

"I believe you invited me into your bed."

"I remember being a little bit mad at you."

"Didn't we kiss and make up?"

"No, we did not."

"Hmmmm….it feels like we did."

"I think I would remember a kiss."

He chuckled and hugged her tight.

She reached over him and picked up the small remote to the gas fireplace from the coffee table and turned it on.

"Are you cold?"

She placed her arm back under the blanket, "A little."

He reached under his head and pulled out the blanket he had been using as a pillow and threw it over her. "Better?"

"Umm."

"Kate?"

"Hmmm?"

"Do you have any idea how much I…."

She placed her hand over his mouth. "Shhh Castle. Let's just sleep, okay?"

He laced his fingers through her hand and kissed it and then lay it back down on his chest and he kissed the top of her head. "Yes dear. You're the boss."

She chuckled and squeezed his hand. "Don't you ever forget it either?"

He fell back to sleep with a smile on his face.

_**Thanks so much for reading. I hope you were at least mildly entertained. Hugs :o)**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**This chapter is the sequel to chapter one. I hope I'm not confusing you too much. It is most definitely the fault of my muse, who is a bit upset about the slushballs falling from the sky today. Seriously…slushballs. Three inches of slush on top of the snow that hasn't melted yet. Okay…on with the story. I'm sure you didn't stop by for a weather update. **_

"So how are the babies?"

"Swimmingly."

He smiled at her. "Did you tell them I said 'good morning'?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, and if you tell anyone I talk to fish you won't ever see them again."

"Got it. We should go visit them for lunch."

"No we shouldn't."

"We don't have a case. We can go by and say 'hello' and maybe you and I can, you know?"

She rolled her eyes and glared at him. "Castle, we don't have a case is right so you should be home writing."

"But this is so much more fun."

"Until I shoot you."

"Right." He stood up from his chair and stretched and looked around. Even Esposito and Ryan were busy with paperwork. He walked into the break room and made two cups of coffee. He sat at one of the tables and picked up a piece of scrap paper and started drawing a picture. When he finished he folded it neatly and put it in his breast pocket and picked up the coffees and headed back to Beckett's desk. She was nowhere to be seen so he sat in her chair and took out the picture and laid it in front of her computer. He was so engrossed in what he was doing that he never heard her come up behind him.

"Castle, what are you doin'?"

He jumped right out of the chair and almost knocked her down. "Um, research."

"Research?" She looked closer to the computer screen and then saw the picture. She rolled her eyes. He had drawn a picture of a fishbowl with two fish kissing each other and a heart bubble above the bowl. "Bored much, Castle?"

"Beckett did you ever wonder how often fish have sex?"

"Seriously Castle? Is that what you're 'researching' on my computer?"

"Think about it, Beckett. I mean they're in that tank all day, all night, they must do it."

She stared at him blankly. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and shook her head.

"I suppose they could both be males, or both females. I forgot to ask when I bought them. Do you think the fish guys would be able to tell us? I could have them come back and do a home visit. I mean if they aren't a boy and a girl then we should give them different names. I hope they are a boy and a girl because I really love the names Nick and Nora. Do you suppose it really matters? Beckett? Are you even listening to….." He turned around and she was gone, again. He walked over to Esposito's and Ryan's desks.

"Hey, you guys seen Beckett?"

Esposito looked at Castle and said, "Yeah Bro, she went to see Lanie and said if you even thought about following her we were to throw you in a holding cell and swallow the key. What did you do to piss her off today?"

"Nuthing!"

Kate walked into the morgue and stood over the dead body that Lanie was working on.

Lanie looked up. "Hey, girl."

"Hey."

"What brings you here?"

"I had to get away from Castle."

Lanie quirked an eyebrow. "What did he do today?"

"He just asked me if I knew how often fish had sex."

Lanie started chuckling. "Well, girl maybe you better give him some so he can concentrate on other things."

Kate rolled her eyes at Lanie. "You're a lot of help."

"So how are Nick and Nora?"

"You know about them?"

"Of course"

"How?"

"Facebook."

"He put it on Facebook?"

"Yeah, haven't you friended him yet?"

"Uh, no."

"The picture was really cute."

"What exactly did it say?"

"Oh, 'The newest additions to our family, Meet Nick and Nora, aren't they cute?' Something like that."

"Nice." She walked around and sat on one of the clean tables. "You know I offered to sleep with him."

Lanie looked at her. "And...?"

"And, we didn't."

"And why didn't you?"

"He doesn't want to _just _sleep with me. He wants more; he wants the 'whole fairytale'."

"And you don't?"

She sighed. "I don't know Lanie, he's a good partner, he's great as part of the team. It would be really complicated if it didn't work out. He seems to think he can be the guy I've been waiting for all my life."

"You don't think he is?"

"Seriously, Lanie?"

"Yes, Seriously, Kate. You were a huge fan before you met him."

"And now I know him."

"What's not to love?"

"He said he would make me fall in love with him."

"I think it's too late for that girlfriend."

She rolled her eyes. "Thanks for all your help."

"Anytime. He does have some wonderful qualities, but I think you know that already."

She sighed heavily. "Yeah, I know."

"He's fun and you can use some fun in your life right about now."

"He's also a pain in the a…"

"Uh…little respect for the patient please, she was a nun."

Kate shook her head and smiled at the ME. She slid off the table and headed for the door. She walked out of the morgue and ran right into Castle. "How did I know you would be out here eavesdropping?"

"I wasn't honest, I wouldn't do that."

"Did you get your _research_ done?"

He smiled at her and looped his arm through hers. "That I did."

"I can't believe you put them on Facebook without asking me first."

"You need to accept my friend request."

"I'm not sure that's a very good idea. By the way, how did you get past Ryan and Esposito? I gave them very specific orders."

"Oh that." He leaned over and kissed her temple. "Bribery always works on those two. I know too many of their secrets."

"Really now?"

"Anyhoo…..I was thinking that since we don't have a case and we have worked, oh so very hard for the past few weeks, that we could take the afternoon off and go to the Aquarium."

"You mean the fish jail?"

He chuckled. "I'm convinced they are content there, I mean who wouldn't be? They don't have to worry about where their next meal is coming from or fighting for the last fish stick or keeping their houses clean, kind of like living in a hotel with room service."

"Kind of like how _you_ live."

"What? I clean up after myself, I cook, well sometimes."

"I bet you never cook now that Alexis isn't there to feed. Your fridge is beginning to look a lot like mine."

"I would cook for you."

"Yeah? I could go for a nice home cooked meal."

"What'll it be Detective? Steaks, roast chicken, Italian or maybe seafood…no scratch that bad idea?"

"Steaks sound good, with mushrooms and gravy and baked potatoes and …"

Before she could finish he took her hand and practically dragged her out of the building and onto the street. They started walking toward the Aquarium. It was a warmer than usual day for New York in March and the snow had finally melted. She relaxed and they spent the afternoon looking at fish and reading all about their mating habits. When they finally left hours later they stopped at a meat market and picked up some steaks and then a fresh vegetable stand and bought organic potatoes and salad veggies. She picked up a loaf of fresh homemade bread and they headed back to her apartment, arms laden with food.

As soon as they walked in he dropped the groceries on the counter and went straight to the fishtank.

"Hey, how are you guys? Mommy and Daddy saw some of your relatives today. We even bought you a new plant for your house."

He rattled on and on while Kate chuckled and watched him. She eventually poured them each a glass of wine and started working on the veggies.

"Are you going to chat with them all night? You did promise me a home cooked meal."

"Sorry guys, I guess I need to go help Mommy, she gets a little jealous when I ignore her."

She smacked with the end of a towel and he got to work on the steaks.

"Do you need help over there Detective?"

"I can handle chopping a few veggies Castle."

"You're sure about that?"

She took the knife and started twirling it around her fingers, his eyes got wide."

"UH…right. Kate, take it easy."

She caught the knife and winked at him and continued her chopping.

"That was pretty hot."

This got a classic Beckett eye roll and head shake. He leaned across the counter and kissed her, she put the knife down and leaned into the kiss, pulling on his shirt collar and smiling at him as she kissed him again.

"You know, Detective, I could get used to cooking dinner with you every night."

She whispered in his ear, "Wait until you see what I do for dessert."

He stood there with his mouth wide open and she popped a piece of carrot in his mouth and laughed at him and went back to work on the veggies while he reluctantly went back to cooking the steaks and contemplated her comment about dessert.

_**This story is just ridiculously fluffy nonsense, however I really appreciate all the reviews and alerts and favorites. You are the sunshine I haven't seen in months ;o))))**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**So, I think it took me longer to figure out where this chapter falls in the storyline than it did to actually write it. So here's how it goes:**_

_**Chapter 1 is Part 4; Chapter 2 is Part 3; Chapter 3 is Part 1; Chapter 4 is Part 5; Chapter 5 is Part 2.**_

_**I hope you aren't too confused. I know I am. But this is what happens when I try to write a simple little one or two-shot and you guys begged…well….asked nicely for me to continue :o)**_

_**This is for all the lovely people at CastleTV chat. I hope this keeps me out of the woodchipper ;o)**_

_**Disclaimer: Characters are not mine, not now, not ever. Thanks to the wonderful Andrew Marlowe and company for them.**_

She woke up hours later having slept better than she had in weeks. She noticed a few things immediately, one was that she was warm and she never woke up warm, the other was that she felt content and someone was holding her tight. She blinked a few times adjusting to her whereabouts. Then it dawned on her that she was on her couch practically on top of Castle. She sighed heavily. Her head was telling her she didn't want him to be here but her heart and her body were telling her otherwise. She could hear her mother saying '_sometimes Katie you have to follow your heart, sometimes just to find out it's not what you wanted after all but at least you won't spend the rest of your life regretting not going there.'._

He had been awake for a few minutes and had been listening to her breathing, probably just as creepy as watching her sleep. He smiled and when he felt her sigh he hugged her tighter and gently ran his hand up and down her back.

"Hey."

She turned her head and rested her chin on his chest so she could look at him. "Hey."

He was speechless. He was deliriously happy. She was beautiful even with her bed head hair. He was enjoying every minute that it was taking for this all to register in her pretty little head because he was quite certain that at any minute she would either pull out her gun or get up off the couch and demand he leave. Instead she surprised him; she traced her finger along his jaw.

"You were right."

His eyes opened wide and he had a million snarky remarks going through his head, namely that he should be recording this moment in time because she never admitted that he was right. He settled for safe though and barely was able to squeak out a "How's that?"

"You do make a great teddy bear."

She scooted herself up just enough so that her face was right in front of his, she looked right at him and smiled, then leaned in and softly kissed him on the lips. It was over before his brain could catch up with his heart which he was pretty sure had stopped beating. She smiled at his reaction and lay her head back down on his chest; her hand resting right beside her face; smoothing over his shirt. She felt his breath hitch. She was turning him into a pile of mush and she knew it. He brought his hand up to caress her cheek and moved her hair away from her face; his hand slowly picked up her hand and kissed it. She squeezed it gently then rested it back on his chest.

He remained speechless for a few more moments, just rubbing her back. The snow had finally stopped and the sun, what little there had been of it, had long since gone behind the buildings across the street. The only light in the room was from the gas fireplace. He was startled out of his musings when she spoke.

"You're awfully quiet."

"I was just thinking I'm glad I didn't take you up on your offer to sleep with you."

She chuckled. "Should I be flattered or offended?"

He chuckled in return. "I want to make you fall in love with me, to fall in love with us. I want you to want the whole fairy tale."

She sucked in her breath and held it for a second longer than was necessary. "That's a pretty tall order Mr. Castle."

"I'm up for the challenge."

"You might not like what you get into."

"I think I would like it less if I didn't at least try."

"I come with a lot of baggage."

"As do I, Kate."

They were quiet for few moments. Neither of them wanted to move. She was playing with the button on his shirt, surprising herself that she wanted to unbutton it and run her hands over his bare chest. She took another deep breath and thought it was about time they moved or she would be dragging him off to her bed after all.

"We should get up."

"You're probably right, I'm getting hungry and you have no food."

"I have food."

"You have Nutella and one egg."

"I think there's a box of Cheerios."

"No milk."

"They're pretty good mixed with Nutella."

He scrunched up his face."Ugh, no thanks."

" Maybe with the promise of a large tip we can get someone to deliver food."

"Or we could go out ourselves and play in the snow, and get groceries so we have something for breakfast in the morning."

"Oh, are you planning on spending the night?"

"Well, I wouldn't want to leave you all alone stranded in the snow."

"I'm used to fending for myself, Castle."

"Don't you get lonely though?"

"I was an only child with very busy parents; I'm used to being alone and taking care of myself."

"But it's nice to have someone to take care of you, it's nice to have someone around to talk to, you should have a pet."

"That's just having something to take care of, so no thanks. You're just looking for excuses to stay and not go home. Maybe you're the one that needs a pet."

"But you don't really want me to leave, right?"

"_You _don't want you to leave. Right?"

"Right." His stomach growled and she chuckled and rolled off the couch, tossing the blanket at him. Raking a hand through her tousled hair, she held out a hand to him and helped him up and led him to the kitchen, she opened up a drawer and handed him a pile of take-out menus.

"I'm going to go brush my teeth, why don't you pick something and call it in."

"It stopped snowing, we could go out."

"I'm good with staying in where it's warm and dry."

"Alrighty then, take-out it is." He smiled and picked up the menus. "Italian or Chinese?"

She snuck back around the corner. "I thought you could read minds?"

He knew she loved Chinese but he also knew that after a long week of insane work they had eaten Chinese and pizza all week. He opted for Italian, ordering veal parmesan and fettuccini with a bottle of wine and some Italian cookies for dessert. He promised the delivery boy it would be worth his time and effort.

She came back out into the kitchen with her face scrubbed and her hair pulled up in a messy bun. "So Castle, since we spent the afternoon sleeping and you clearly don't want to go home anytime soon, nor do you want to spend the evening in bed with me….."

He cut her off…"Yet."

"Yet." She rolled her eyes. "What do you suggest we do all evening?"

"We could curl up on the couch and watch a movie."

She stood there with her arms crossed leaning up against the counter. "You're going to have to do better than that if you want the 'whole fairy tale', Castle. I'm not going to spend my evenings in front of a TV. I'm going to pull out the big guns here."

His eyes got wide as he watched her go over to the bookcase and pull out a game. She set it on the coffee table. "Come on Prince Charming; let's see if you're all your cracked up to be."

He loved games but he'd never dated a woman that enjoyed them like he did. When he saw what game it was he stopped short. "You're kidding, right?"

"Nope. If you can't handle an entire evening of this then I'm afraid there is no hope for our future."

"You should know that no one has ever beaten me at this game."

"Well the only one that has ever beaten me was my mother."

He strolled over to her and kissed her on the forehead. "Do you have any idea how hot this makes you?"

She rolled her eyes and sat on the couch and opened up the game. When she pulled the board off, he gasped.

"What?"

"You put the game away with all the tiles upside down _and_ ready to play?"

She put her head down and blushed. "Old habits die hard; my mother always said the loser had to set the game up for next time." She got quiet for a few seconds then looked up at him smiling. "This was her game, it happened to be at Lanie's when my place blew up. I like playing knowing that she played with these same tiles."

"I wish I had known her."

"She would have liked you."

"Yeah, you think so?"

She smiled and nodded and went back to setting up the game.

He sat down beside her on the couch. "So who did you lose to last time?"

She chuckled, "Lanie, she's the only other person who'll play with me."

"Somehow I can't picture Lanie turning over all these tiles."

"You should hear her piss and moan about it. I have to make sure she has large amounts of alcohol and chocolate."

"I'm surprised she keeps playing if she always loses."

"She's actually pretty good, and she keeps me on my toes, but she gets bored after a few hours. We haven't played in quite some time."

"Yeah, like since she and Esposito have been together."

"Um hmmm. I'm happy for them."

He looked up and smiled at her. "Yeah, me too, they make a cute couple."

Their dinner arrived and Castle paid the delivery boy. He handed the bottle of wine to Kate and grabbed plates and they piled up their dishes and took them into the living room and got going with their game.

"So, you are a mind reader after all."

"Well, considering all the pizza and Chinese we had last week, this was the logical choice."

"Very good choice, especially the wine, but don't think you can get me drunk. Lanie and I put away quite a bit of alcohol and I still win."

"Hey, I ordered that before you brought out the game."

She started out with 'jousted' using all seven of her tiles and a smooth 96 points. The game went on for hours, they drank wine, ate all the food and then he brought out the cookies; she promptly got the jar of Nutella and dipped her cookies in it. Moaning and rolling her eyes as she savored them.

They were down to the last few tiles. The 'Z' still hadn't been played. The score was close, she was in the lead. He turned over the 'Z' and immediately saw where he could use it for a triple letter score. She took her turn and he placed the tile to form the word 'za'.

"What? That is so _NOT_ a word Castle."

"Is so."

With a mouthful of cookies she said, "Na ah."

"Fraid so, my dear detective, would you care to challenge me? You do know you would lose 50 points and I could win this game."

"What does it mean?"

"It's short for pizza."

"Seriously? Nice try. I'm challenging you." She got up to pull her old dog eared copy of the _Scrabble Player's Dictionary_ out of her bookcase.

"It won't be in there, Kate. That has to be at least 15 years old."

She glared at him. "If it isn't in here then I win."

He pulled out his phone. "We'll check the most up to date version of Merriam-Webster."

She rolled her eyes and waited for it to load. He scooted closer to her so she could see the phone. He turned and looked at her. "I'll make you a deal, detective. If it is in here you have to give us a chance. Let me show you how fairy tales really can come true. Deal or No Deal?" He waggled his eyebrows at her.

She rolled her eyes again and took a deep breath. "And if it's not in there, then what?"

"Then I'm going to work really hard to sway you."

She smiled and whispered softly, "Sounds like a _win-win_ for you and a _lose-lose_ for me."

"Oh Beckett, you really know how to hurt a guy." He looked back at his phone and smiled. He knew the word was in here, he knew he was going to win the bet and ultimately the game. "Look at that. 'za-short for pizza'. I win."

He snaked his arm around her waist and pulled her close. He fully expected her to back away but she didn't, she smiled and looked at him, then at his mouth and raised her eyebrows taunting him. He smiled and quirked an eyebrow and leaned in and placed a feather light kiss on her lips, he was going to leave it at that, but she pulled him to her and kissed him fully, all in, heart going a mile a minute.

She whispered softly, "You win, fair and square. I hope you can handle the ride."

"I can handle anything you can dish out, Detective."

"I wouldn't be so sure of yourself, Castle."

He leaned in and kissed her one more time and then started to put the tiles away.

She pushed his hand away. "I'll get it."

"No,no, it doesn't seem fair to make you do this."

"Really Castle, I think I can handle it, I'm not a sore loser." She turned over the rest of the tiles and put the game back together. "However, we will have a rematch, soon."

"Yeah? How soon?"

"Soon, but not tonight soon." She should be cleaning up the mess and kicking him out, but truth be told she was enjoying his company. "Winner has to do dishes."

"Are you trying to talk me into staying longer?"

"Not at all. Just being lazy. Thought I'd take advantage of you while I could." She raised her eyebrow and smiled.

"Only seems fair since I took advantage of you."

"When?"

"When we made the bet. I knew 'za' was a word."

"Yeah, well, I never actually _agreed_ to the bet."

"It was assumed."

She smiled and said "Yeah, well we all know what that means."

"Yeah, story of my life."

"Well, just for that you get to cleanup _and_ you have to leave."

He kissed her one more time, slow and sweet, one hand settling on her waist, thumb caressing her rib cage, the other hand on her neck; thumb caressing her jaw. He whispered into her lips, "But, I get to come back."

It took her a second to open her eyes and uncurl her toes and focus on what he was saying. "Yes, you do. Maybe tomorrow?"

He smiled and placed a light kiss on her nose. "Tomorrow is good. I can live with that." He stood up and pulled her up with him and they gathered their dishes and glasses and the empty jar of Nutella.

"Now I am officially out of food."

"There's an egg for breakfast."

"Yep, oh and some garlic bread."

"I won't be kissing you 'good morning'."

"You're right you won't, since we'll be at the precinct when I see you next."

He sighed. "Maybe I should sta….."

"Maybe you better get out of here before I renege on our _assumed_ deal."

"Right." He slid his feet into his shoes and grabbed his coat. He leaned into her and wrapped her into a bear hug and kissed her quickly. "I'll see you bright and early in the morning with coffee and breakfast."

She pulled back and smiled at him. "Until tomorrow then?"

His face lit up and he placed a kiss on her forehead. "Yes, Detective. Until tomorrow."

She rolled her eyes and shook her head and pushed him out the door. She sighed heavily and smiled, turning out the lights and climbing into bed, a little more hopeful than she had dared to be in a very long time.

_**GAH…not sure where all this sappy, cheesiness comes from. Hope you enjoy. Thanks again for all the awesome reviews, favorites and story alerts. You are making this loooong, dreary winter most bearable as I sit here in my warm kitchen with my puppies and sip tea.… AND it is **_**snowing**_** here AGAIN….ARRRRGGGHHHHH.**_

_**For those of you waiting for an update of 'Sleeping Beauty?' it may be awhile. I have a chapter written but I don't like it. So we'll see what happens. Hugs :o)**_


	6. Chapter 6

_**This is chapter 6 which is also part 6. And just in case you want to re-read in order:**_

_**Chapter 1 is Part 4; Chapter 2 is Part 3; Chapter 3 is Part 1; Chapter 4 is Part 5; Chapter 5 is Part 2.**_

_**This is for all of my newfound virtual Castle friends. Hugs and thanks again for keeping me out of the 'Looney Bin'.**_

_**Characters are still so not mine.**_

They were standing in front of the murder board; she had one hand on her chin and elbowed him in the ribs with her other. "So any thoughts?"

"Dessert."

"What?"

"Dessert, you said I should wait and see what you have planned for dessert."

"That's what you're thinking about?"

"Yes."

"Do you by any chance have any thoughts on who might have killed our victim?"

"No, none at all."

"Hmph."

"So what _did_ you have planned for dessert?"

"Castle, focus."

"Whipped cream?"

Esposito showed up behind them and startled them with his inquiry. "What about whipped cream?"

Beckett turned towards Castle and glared at him.

"Uh, I was just asking Ka…um Beckett if she wanted whipped cream on her hot cocoa. I'll get right on that."

"Riiiiight." He handed her the file with the vic's financials and smiled at her.

She slapped him upside the head with the file and said, "Shut up, _Baby_."

"Come on Beckett, lighten up. Everyone knows you guys are, you know… together." He did air quotes with his fingers when he said together.

"And you have a reliable source for that information?"

"Well…just using my detective skills."

"Uh huh." She glared at him and then spat out. "How about you go check the crime scene again for a cell phone or wallet; I'm sure there's part of that dumpster you missed." She stormed into the break room and slammed the door making Castle jump and nearly spilling hot chocolate all over the place.

With clenched teeth and just slightly louder than a whisper she said, "Did you tell Esposito we were sleeping together?"

He looked at her with wide eyes. "Seriously, Kate?"

"Yes, Seriously Rick."

He sighed. "I hope you don't think I would be that insensitive."

"Okay, let me rephrase the question. When Esposito suggested that we might be 'together' did you somehow give him the impression that we were 'more than together'?"

He put the hot chocolate down on the counter. "No, I did not. Nor would I have even if we were, okay?"

She raked her hand through her hair. "I'm sorry. I just.."

"I know how much you value your private life, Kate. I want this to work. I have wanted this to work for a very long time. I'm trying really hard not to screw this up, because we all know I am the consummate screw up." He reached over and gave her hand a squeeze. She returned the gesture and gave him a weak smile.

She took a deep breath and composed herself and slowly opened the door and went back to her desk. He added a shot of espresso to her hot chocolate and brought it out to her. Setting it on her desk, he looked around and asked, "Where's Esposito?"

"Uh, dumpster diving."

He shot his eyebrows up and smiled. "Perhaps I should be helping him?"

"No, you can stay here."

"Look Castle this fairytale thing you want, I don't think it's going to work."

"Can you at least give it a chance?"

"I have."

"Not really."

"You're arguing with me."

"You're being unreasonable."

"I am not an unreasonable person, Castle."

"Most of the time, no, you're not. You're probably the most reasonable person I know, well…next to my daughter, however right now though, yes, you are being unreasonable."

"I'm not going to do this at work."

"Fine, then we'll discuss it later." He pulled his phone out of his pocket and started playing angry birds. "Over dessert."

She stopped typing, looked over at him, and closed her eyes for a second. She mumbled, "This is so not going to work." She ripped his phone out of his hands, paused the game, and dropped it into her shirt pocket. "Castle, if you aren't going to help me with the case then go home."

He sighed, got up from his chair, and went over to the murder board. She ignored him and continued to go through the file Esposito had given her. He started writing things on the time line and contemplated the murder board. She pulled his phone out of her pocket and picked up where he left off with the game. He scrubbed his face, turned, and looked at her, realized she was about to ruin his high score and said, "I'm sorry, you're right. I don't think this is going to work."

She quirked an eyebrow up at him and continued with the game.

He tried to steal it away from her and she jumped up and scooted off to the break room. He was right on her heels and shut the door behind him.

A few minutes later Esposito and Ryan showed up, they could hear loud noises coming from the break room.

"Castle, I'm almost done."

"Beckett, well hurry up I want a turn, too."

Ryan raised his eyebrows and Esposito let out a low whistle. "You 'spose they're going at it in the break room, Bro?"

"I never figured Beckett to be that type."

"Well three years of unresolved…."

"I got it, dude."

They waited a few minutes and the door burst open. Beckett was out first with a big smile on her face. As per usual, Castle was right on her heels.

"So, what did we interrupt?"

At the same time Beckett said "Nothing" Castle answered, "Angry birds."

"Ahhhhh, so that's what the cool kids are calling it these days.

Castle whined like a three year old, "Beckett, that was going to be my highest score _ever_ and you lost the game."

"Serves you right Castle, you shouldn't be playing at work anyway."

"But I wasn't working."

Beckett rolled her eyes and mumbled, "That's the understatement of the year."

Ryan followed them back to Beckett's desk. "Wait, you guys were playing angry birds again weren't you?"

"Yea, what did you think we were doing?"

Esposito just grinned.

Beckett decided to play along with their game. "Well, I wanted to but Castle here was afraid we'd make too much noise." She turned on her heel and sauntered back to her desk leaving all three boys with their mouths hanging open.

Ryan recovered first, brought the file to Beckett, and smiled at her. "By the way, while we were dumpster diving we found our suspect, says he shot the guy in self defense and he lawyered up. So uh, you can resume your little game and we'll just scoot on out of here and get out of your way."

She handed the file to Esposito and said, "You can finish the paperwork, Castle and I have some unfinished business to take care of. She slipped on her jacket and slung her purse over her shoulder.

Castle tagged along beside her. "So what are we going to finish up?"

"Angry birds."

"What about dessert?"

"I have some vanilla ice cream at my place; we can put some Nutella on it." She looked at him with a sly smile, "And maybe find a few other things to put it on, too."

"Nutella huh?"

"Yeah Castle, you got a problem with Nutella? Because this fairytale you want is over before it really got started if you do."

"Oh, no I love the stuff, my favorite stuff in the world, love it almost as much as whipped cream."

She rolled her eyes and shook her head."

"Better than whipped cream, really."

When they walked into her apartment, the only light was from the soft glow of the fish tank. They removed their coats; he hung hers up in the closet and tossed his over the back of the barstool. She walked over to the tank and tilted her head to peek in, he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, and she placed her hands on top of his. She looked up at him, "It is pretty, and the running water is very soothing. I like it. Thank you." She placed a kiss on his cheek then looked back at the tank letting her finger trail down the front, Nick and Nora swam over and she said, "Hi babies, did you miss us? We missed you."

He smiled and turned her around and placed his hand on her neck and kissed her. "I missed you."

She chuckled; you haven't been out of my sight all day. How could you possibly miss me?"

"I missed this." He kissed her again and slid his hand under her shirt. She took in a breath at his soft touch on her bare waist and leaned into the kiss. He pressed her closer to him and deepened the kiss. She pulled back resting her palms on the front of his shirt and playing with the buttons, he kissed her on the forehead and she undid the top two buttons and then slid her hands around his neck, placing feather light kisses on his chest.

She whispered into his ear, "So Rick, about that dessert I promised you."

He took a deep breath. "Ummmm, yeah…dessert." He reluctantly removed his hand from under her shirt and slid it up her back, gently pulling her toward him into a hug.

"Where would you like that Nutella?"

He kissed her and quietly whispered back to her, "Maybe we should have it over ice cream and cool down a little?"

"Don't tell me I'm too much for you to handle."

"Kate, you've always been too much for me to handle."

She smiled at him and patted his chest with her hand then sauntered off into the kitchen to get the ice cream.

He pulled his shirt out from his jeans, took a deep breath, and walked over to her computer. "Do you mind if I fire this up?"

"No, why?''

"Angry birds."

"Ah, don't you dare install that on my computer."

"Why not? I thought you loved it?"

"Yeah, on your phone, not here."

"Why not here? Afraid you'll get addicted."

"Absolutely. That game is ridiculously addicting."

She walked over and deposited a large bowl full of ice cream on the coffee table along with the jar of Nutella and a can of whipped cream. She had two spoons in her hand. He walked over to the couch and sat down and she sat beside him.

He looked over at her. "Is that yours or mine?"

"Ours, we're sharing." She started spooning Nutella onto the ice cream.

"But what if I don't want…."

She glared at him.

"…..quite so much Nutella."

"Here's the deal, I get to put as much Nutella as I want and you get to put as much whipped cream as you want."

"Deal."

She upended the jar all over the ice cream and he stared at the mess, when she was done she handed him the can of whipped cream and smiled.

He smiled back at her and proceeded to spray the entire can on top of the Nutella so it looked like a mountain.

Her eyes got big and then she glared at him. "Hey, I can't get to the Nutella."

"Well, I can't get to the ice cream."

"We're going to get sick."

"That would be your fault."

"Mine? You're kidding, right? You used way more whipped cream than I used of the Nutella."

"Yes, but you can eat more whipped cream than Nutella before getting sick." He placed the spoon into the whipped cream mountain and it started to topple.

"CASTLE, do something!"

He quickly moved his face towards the leaning tower of whipped cream and sucked up a large amount of the fluffy stuff in one gulp.

Kate was laughing; his face from his nose down was covered in whipped cream, his cheeks were all puffed out and his mouth was so full he couldn't talk. He mumbled something incoherent, but his eyes were telling her exactly what he wanted. She laughed harder and shook her head. "Nope, you got into this mess all by yourself."

His eyes got more desperate.

"Castle, if you get sick all over me, all over my couch, all over my ice cream…." Her smile turned into a glare. "….this fairytale you're looking for is _so_ done."

He swallowed hard a few times and then took a deep breath. He smiled at her and leaned towards her. Her eyes got bigger, she was still holding the bowl of ice cream on her lap, and she tried to maneuver it onto the table. He took it from her, placed it in his lap, and continued to move forward.

She placed her hand up to his chest to stop him. "Castle, don't even think about it." She took her other hand and dragged a finger along his jaw collecting the white fluffy mess and proceeded to feed it to him from her finger, he opened his mouth and sucked the whipped cream off.

He held her hand and kissed it and then brought it to his chin to collect some more and proceeded to lick it off her fingers, kissing each one as he finished. "This works just as well."

She shook her head and said, "You really are the most exasperating man I have ever met."

He smiled and leaned in and kissed her then traced the whipped cream off her face and let her suck it off his finger. "Tell me you do not love every minute of this, Detective."

She blushed slightly and grabbed the spoons from the coffee table and handed one to him, she leaned back onto the couch, turning her body so it was up against the arm and plucked the bowl off his lap and placed her legs in its place. She scooped out a large spoonful, fed it to him, and smiled. "Maybe I do, just a little bit."

"Just a little bit huh? We'll have to work on that then." He took the spoon from her and placed it back in the bowl and leaned forward, snaking his hand around her neck and leaning down leaving little butterfly kisses all over her face and neck, she sunk further down into the couch and sighed, and he smiled into her lips and kissed her. "That's more like it."

Without removing her lips from his she took the bowl, placed it back on the table, and pulled him down to her. "Better?"

He chuckled, turned his body so he was on top of her, and kissed her again. "Much better."

She giggled when he ran his fingers along her rib cage. "But not best."

He smiled. "Not yet."

She traced her finger along his cheek and lips and tilted her head, kissed him lightly and said, "Soon, though."

He kissed her nose and forehead and said "Yes, soon." Then he whispered into her ear, "But not in front of the babies."

She rolled her eyes and pulled him back down for another kiss, leaving the ice cream to melt in the bowl on the table.

_**I'm not quite sure what possess me to write this stuff. My brain has been invaded by a mushy cheese virus ;o) However, I'm only doing it because you asked for more. Please tell me it's time to stop?**_


	7. Chapter 7

_**This is the edited version of this chapter. FF didn't post it right. Only change is the last line. Hope it makes sense now. Thanks.**_

_**Characters are not mine. **_

_**Once again this is for all my virtual friends in the land of Castle. Thanks again for keeping me sane.**_

_**Here's a little giggle while we all wait for the last two eps and then go into our summer psychosis. **_

She was sitting in front of the fish tank sipping a glass of wine, she had reluctantly sent him home almost an hour ago. "So, Nora, what do you think? Is he my Prince Charming, my knight in shining armor?" She giggled as the fish swam around enthusiastically. "Should I just jump right in and see where it goes. There's no doubt he's a great guy and he is very good to me. But you know there are those days when I just want to shoot him." She took another sip of wine and looked around for the other fish. "How about you Nick, from a guys perspective, what do you think I should do? Of course, you're a guy, we all know what you want. If you really are a guy, or are you Nora?" She looked at her wine and rolled her eyes. "Great now he's got me confiding in the fish."

She rinsed out her glass and the ice cream dishes and dragged her hand across the glass tank as she said, "Night babies," then headed off to bed. At some point in the night, an unfamiliar beeping noise woke her up. She sat up and looked around raking a hand through her hair, a flash of light and loud crash of thunder startled her. It was then that she noticed the complete darkness in her room. There was no light on her clock radio, no streetlight shining in her window. She grabbed her phone, opened it, and used it as a light to go investigate the obnoxious sound.

As soon as she got out to the kitchen, she realized it was coming from the fish tank. She panicked and called Castle immediately.

He croaked out a very hoarse, "Beckett, did you miss me?"

"Castle, I don't have any electricity."

He heard the panic in her voice. "Um, I'm sorry about that Kate, would you like me to come over with a flashlight?"

"Castle, don't be an ass…"

"Beckett, what is that noise?"

"Castle, it's the tank, the fish tank, what's going to happen to our babies?" She rolled her eyes at her own comment, did she really just call them 'our babies'? "You need to do something, how long can they survive without that thingy running, you need to get over here now."

He climbed out of bed, pulled on a pair of sweats and headed out to the kitchen, grabbing his keys and slipping his feet into shoes, he left his building. "Beckett, calm down."

"Castle don't you dare tell me to calm down, you buy me this stupid contraption and make me name them and talk to them and now that I'm getting attached you're going to make me sit here and watch them suffocate….."

"Beckett…"

"Castle this is not fair, you need to get over here and do something..."

"Kate…."

"Are you even listening to me? Are you on your way here, you should be here by now."

"Are you done?"

"_No!"_ She blew her nose and peeked in at the tank again. "I can't see any air bubbles, Castle, and how do I shut that beep off, why is it beeping, how can it beep if there's no electricity? It's giving me a headache. It's probably driving Nora crazy…..I bet Nick doesn't' even care, he's probably sleeping through it…he's such a guy. Or maybe…Oh my god Castle what if he's not sleeping." She blew her nose again.

"Kate, are you crying?"

"No." Just then, she hiccupped.

"How much wine have you had?" He heard her groan and then the phone disconnected. He figured it was in his best interest to get over there and not bother to explain over the phone, she was obviously quite distraught.

When he knocked on her door she had started to doze at the counter, the beeping hadn't stopped. She answered the door with red-rimmed eyes. Her hair was tousled and more than not was in her face. She was wearing a trim fitting t-shirt and a pair of boxer shorts. She glared at him and started poking him in the chest "If they die Castle I'm never speaking to you again, you're done, no I'm your partner forever and always, no happily-ever-after nothing."

He flinched from all the poking and screaming and gently reached for her hands. He leaned in and kissed her. "They are not going to die, Kate." He took her hand and brought her around the tank and opened the cupboard, he shone the flashlight at the small box that was beeping. "This is the battery back-up. It's good for 36 hours, just flip this button like this." The beeping stopped instantly. The beep is just to let you know it has gone into back-up mode, it never stopped running. The babies are fine."

Her eyes got wide as she watched the fish swim around the tank. She smiled and swiped at the tears on her face. She sighed and looked back at him. "Why didn't you just tell me that on the phone, Castle?"

"Beckett, I …"

"I could have done that, if you had just told me."

"I tri…."

"Do you have any idea how obnoxious that beep is? I think I've got a migraine."

It was his turn to roll his eyes. He leaned over, picked her up, and carried her into her room, kicking and flailing. Her eyes were wide and she started to say something again and he covered her mouth with his lips, he dropped her on the bed and as he started to turn away, she grabbed at his shirt and pulled him onto the bed.

"Stay."

"Kate." He arched his eyebrows and took a deep breath. She took the flashlight from his hand, placed it on the nightstand, and tugged him down beside her. He kicked off his shoes; she snuggled in beside him and rested her head on his chest.

She laced her fingers through his, brought his hand up to her lips, and kissed it softly. "Thank you."

"Kate?"

She leaned up and said, "Shhhhh, go to sleep Castle." She kissed him and then pulled the quilt up over them and snuggled back onto his chest.

The storm carried on outside, making Kate jump with every crash of thunder.

He held her tighter and ran his hand up and down her back. "Are you afraid of the thunder?"

"Mmmnooo."

"That's the real reason you made me come over."

"Is not."

"Is so." He kissed her on the top of her head. "You're even shivering."

"I was afraid the babies would die."

"Seriously?"

"Yes, I think I've fallen in love with them."

"So the fish get the fairy tale and I don't?"

"You're in my bed."

"I should get some points for rescuing my damsel in distress."

"I wasn't...okay...maybe a little...Castle we probably shouldn't have kids. I think it might just push me over the edge."

He smiled at her admission that maybe there was a future with him in it after all. "I'll make sure you know where their battery backup is."

She slapped his chest and giggled. "I'm cold."

"Well, good thing your Prince Charming is here to rescue you."He rolled over on top of her and kissed her long and sweet.

"Again."

"You want me to kiss you again?"

She smiled into the kiss. "My Prince Charming has rescued me again."

"Glad to be of service Madame."

"I think we've reached the point of no return."

"You think, maybe?" He kissed her eyelids and forehead and then her nose and started nibbling on her ear and neck. "I reached the point of no return three years ago, Kate."

She giggled at his ministrations to her ear and neck. "Sometimes I'm a little slow, and I'm not sure what you want with such damaged goods."

"I'm going to ignore that last remark. I meant it when I said you are extraordinary, God knows you probably deserve someone better than me but I sure hope you'll give me a chance to do the title of Prince Charming some justice."

"Okay."

"Really?" He stopped nibbling on her neck and looked at her.

"Yes."

He leaned back down and kissed her desperately.

When he finally stopped, she ran her finger along his collarbone and smiled. "There is one rule you can't break though."

"Why do you always have to have rules?"

"It's the cop in me."

"Okay, what's the rule?"

"You can't leave this bed until I say so." She smiled, winked, and worked her hands under the waistband of his sweats.

He chuckled, kissed her again and said, "…..and they lived happily ever after….in Beckett's bed."

She giggled into his kiss. "Best,Story,Ever."

_**So, this is the last chapter of this ridiculously out of character story :o) Thanks to all of you who reviewed, added author alerts and favorites. I have another story in mind and may post before the finale….we'll see what happens with the muse. For those of you waiting for an update to 'Sleeping Beauty?' Hopefully it won't be too much longer. Busy doesn't even begin to describe my life right now.**_


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